Articulated door



. 8, 1959 w. R. D'ORAZIO ARTICULATED DOOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April16, 1956 m \MER 22 G INVENTOR WILLIAM R. D'ORAZIO FIG. 3.

ATTORNEY Dec. 8, 1959 w. R. DORAZIO 2,916,089

ARTICULATED DOOR Filed April 16, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 T I j l I H I i I1 I06 I' 3 no I 98.! I

T I I l I T(L 5 i ":04 :w" I 0 II I i I I0 96 l I 1 I l 1 FIG. 4.

FIG. 7.

FIG. 8. FIG. 9.-

INg/ENTOR. VLLLIAM R. D'ORAZIO ATTORNEYS Un tc S ew P t m Q ARTICULATEDDOOR William R. DOrazio, Clifton Heights, Pa., assignor to The CommanderDoor, Inc., Holmes, Pa., a corpora- 1 tion of Illinois Application April16, '1956, Serial No. 578,232

8 Claims. 01. 160-201) I This invention relates to an articulated doorstructure and, more particularly, to the type of door generally referredto as an overhead door.

It is common practice to build the well known overhead door, such as isconventionally employed for domestic garage doors, of a plurality ofpanels extending transversely of the garage door opening and in verticallinear array with adjacent edges of the panels of the array hingedlyconnected by various pairs of hinge forming members connected toadjacent panels. The panels are also provided with roller mounting meansfor positioning rollers in guide tracks in which the door is supportedin its vertical and in its overhead horizontal positions. In order toprovide door panels ofsuitable stiffness having moderate weight it isconventional to employ a light panel supported in a relatively heavywood frame.

It is the primary object of this invention to provide a simplified doorpanel construction and an improved panel hinge construction.

' It is a further object of the invention to provide a panel hingeconstruction which will serve simultaneously as reinforcing means forthe panels and mounting means for roller mounting shafts.

These and other objects of the invention relating particularly to theconstruction thereof will become evident from the following descriptionwhen read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation of a door assembly in closed position as viewedfrom the inside thereof;

Figure 2 is a vertical section through the closed door taken on thetrace 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section taken on the trace33 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal section taken on thetrace 4-4 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section through the upperportion of the door taken on the trace 1 shown in Figure 8.-

The door assembly described in connection with the figures is of theconventional overhead type of door. It

will be evident that the structure disclosed may equally well beemployed in connection with a door moving horizontally. In the figuresthe door panels are elongated rectangles having their major axesextending horizontally. The invention can equally well be employed in adoor having panels whose major axes extend vertically in the case of anoverhead door, such as shown tally moving door be involved.

2 in Figure l, or horizontally in the event that a horizon- The doorassembly shown in Figures 1 and 2. includes a plurality of door panels10 positioned in linear array and with their adjacent uppermost andlowermost edges in abutting relation. The panels are joined together bytransversely extending pairs of hinge forming strips 12 and 13 which, aswill be described in greater detail in connection with Figure 3, mountrollers positioned to operate in tracks 14 adjacent to each verticallyextending side of the door assembly. When the door assembly is raised,the rollers are carried upwardly in tracks 14, around bends 16 and intooverhead track portions 18. The weight of the door is counterbalanced bymeans of springs 20 each afiixed at one end to a track mounting bracket22 and carrying a roller 24 at the other end over which there passes acable, one end 26 of which is fixed and the other end of which, asindicated at 28 and 30, passes around a roller 32 and extends downwardlyto the bottom of the door where it is attached to the lowermost doorpanel in the conventional fashion.

The door disclosed herein employs conventional tracks and a conventionalcounterbalancing system which need, therefore, not be described indetail. When the door is in closed position, the door panels serve as aclosure for an opening 34 in a building wall and the door panels 10 arepositioned in substantial engagement with a suitable stripping orframing 36 mounted within the door opening 34.

Referring now also to Figures 3 and 4, the formed longitudinallyextending strips 12 and 13 are mounted on lower and upper edges,respectively, of each of the panels 10. More specifically, each strip 12has one of its edges formed with a channel having sides 38 and 40engaging the sides of a panel 10 adjacent to the lower edge of the panelwhich is engaged by the base 42 of the channel. Each strip 12 extendstransversely of the door assembly from one end of the panel to the otherand thus is positioned with its channel in engagement with the loweredge of the panel along its entire transverse length and serves toenclose and reinforce the entire lower edge of the panel. Each strip 12is formed with a leg 44 extending back from its panel 10 and terminatingin an inside coil 46 of cylindrical section.

Each strip 13 has one leg formed with a base 48 with parallel sides in amanner similar to the strips 12 and thus encloses and reinforces theentire uppermost edge of its panel 10. Each strip 13 extendstransversely of its associated panel and encloses and reinforces theupper edge thereof.

Each strip 13 is provided with a rearwardly extending leg 50 whichterminates in a cylindrically formed flange outside coil 52 concentricwith and positioned exteriorly of the cylindrical coil 46 of itsadjacent strip 12. It will be evident upon viewing Figure 3 that theconcentrically arranged coils 46 and 52 are adapted to rotate around acommon center and permit the two strips 12 and 13 to act as two parts ofa hinge which thus serve to hingedly connect adjacent edges of thepanels 10.

A roller mounting shaft '54 is positioned in the inner cylindricallyformed coil 46 at each Side of abutting panels and extends into theflange for a sufficient distance from the end of the flange to provide amounting for Patented Dec. 8, 1959 a 2 I u) between their associatedabutting channels 42 and 48.

When the door is raised from the position shown in Figures 1 and 2 inthe tracks 14 to an overhead position in the tracks 18, it will beevident that, as the door panels pass around the curved tracks 16,adjacent panels will hinge with respect to each other around the axes'ofrotation of the rollers 56. The hinge forming strips provide only asmall displacement of the panels as the rollers pass around the curvedtracks 16 and thus only a small clearance is required outside of thetracks 16.

The uppermost door panel 10 is shown in Figure in a closed positionabutting the header 35 extending across the door opening. To supportthis uppermost edge of this uppermost panel 10, rollers 58 arepositioned in each of the curved track portions 16. A strip 12 extendsacross the top of the top panel and is identical to the strip 12extending across the top of each of the other panels 10. Bracket members60 are provided to support the upper edge of the upper panel 10 in theposition shown in Figure 5 from the rollers 58. A member 60 extendsinwardly from each end of the strip 12 for only a suflicient distance tomount a roll mounting shaft 62 in a cylindrically formed edge thereof.The other edge of each member 60 is provided with a flange 66 which isattached by means of bolts or other suitable fastening means 68 to thestrip 12.

Similarly, at the lowermost end of the lowermost panel 10, the strip 13which reinforces the lowermost edge of the panel would not properlyposition the lowermost roller 70 and thus a separate bracket 72 isprovided with a cylindrically formed end 74 engaging a shaft 76 mountingthe roller 70. The bracket 72 is provided with a flange 78 which isattached to the strip 13 by means of a bolt or other suitable fasteningmeans 80. In order to provide for sealing between the channel of thestrip 13 at the lowermost edge of the lowermost panel '10, a rubberstrip 82 is provided and supported within a retainer strip 84 affixed tothe strip 13 by spot welding or by other suitable fastening means.

Vertically extending members 86 are provided, as shown in Figure 1, inorder to retain the channels of the strips 12 and 13 in engagement withthe edges of the panels 10 over which they are positioned. The members86 are of angle formation having a flange -88 lying in engagement withthe panels and a vertically extending flange 90. The ends of the flanges88 are out free of the flanges 90 and are formed upwardly at the endsthereof as indicated at 92 and attached to the strips 12 g and 13 toprevent separation of the strips and thus to prevent the channels of thestrips from becoming disengaged from the edges of the panels 10. Theends of flanges 90 of the members 86 are provided with bores throughwhich the roller mounting shafts 54 extend and ends of flanges 90 ofadjacent ends of members 86 are in overlapping relation as shown inFigure 4. Thus the loading transmitted between the strips 12 and 13through the flanges 90 is, in part, transmitted through the shafts 54.Angle reinforcing members 94, similar to the members 86, are providedintermediate to the edges of the door. Each member 94 is attached to thetransversely extending Strips 12 and 13 of a panel. However, inasmuch asthe strips 12 and 13 are continuous, the upstanding flanges of themembers 9 4 do not intersect the strips.

In Figure 7 there is shown a modified form of the invention where doorpanels 96 are provided with strips 98 and 100 similar to the strips 12and '13 previously described. The inner edges of the strips 98 and 100are provided with concentric cylindrically formed coils 106 mounting ashaft 108 supporting a roller 110 in the manner similar to the strips 12and 13. However, the strips 98 and 100 have their channel formed edges102, 104, respectively, formed with the base of each channel extendingin a plane displaced from a perpendicular to the door panels '96. Theangle of this displacement is '4 selected so as to provide a slightlyoverlapping relation between the ends of adjacent panels to provide arain shed to prevent the entrance of rain water between adjacent panelsof the closed door.

A further modification of the door is shown in Figure 8 in which a pairof panels 112 are provided with strips 114 and 116 similar to the strips12 and 13 described in connection with Figure 1 and having cylindricallyformed edges 118 mounting a shaft 120 supporting a roller 122. However,the strips 114 and 116 are so formed as to position their channel formededges 124 and 126, respectively, in a side-by-side relation when thedoor is in a closed position, thus providing for a substantial overlapof the lower edge of the upper panel over the upper edge of the lowerpanel. This arrangements provides a door which, when closed, has theappearance of a lap siding or a shingled Wall.

It will be evident that, when the arrangement shown in Figure 8 isemployed, the panel 112 must be positioned between vertically extendingside members such as the building walls 34 in order to provide closureat the upper portions of the ends of the panels 112. Thus as shown inFigure 8, the framing 36' is moved outwardly from the position occupiedby the framing 36 shown in Figure 4. In the arrangement shown in Figures8 and 9, the roll mounting bracket at the top of the door, as indicatedat 60 in Figure 5, will be reformed slightly, as shown at 130 and 131 inFigure 9, in order to tilt the top panel 112 to provide an incline inthe panel identical to the incline of the other panels.

In conventional overhead door construction, fairly heavy wooden framingis employed around each panel. This framing is generally wood and is ofthe order of 1% inch thick and 3 to 5 inches wide. The framing supportspanels which may be glass, plywood or other desired material. My doorconstruction permits the use of /4 inch plywood panels without the useof any heavy wood reinforcing framing. The continuous transverselyextending strips 12 and 13 provide suificient stiffening and support forthe plywood panels to prevent excessive bow in the panels in response tomanually applied pressure thereon when the door is in a closed positionor in response to the weight of the panels when the door is in anoverhead or opened position. Both the channel formed portions and thecylindrical formed portions of the strips serve as reinforcing membersin conjunction with the Webs 44 and 50 serving to stabilize these websand thus each of the strips is, in effect, a web type truss serving thedual function of a panel reinforcing member and a hinge member. The factthat the two hinge members may operate without the need of a hinge pinprovides a further saving in material and a further reduction in theweight of the structure. As previously noted, however, the cylindricalhinge forming portions of these strips provide convenient mounting meansfor the short shafts mounting the rollers on which the door operates.

The cost of the conventional door construction employing the relativelyheavy framing previously noted is increased due to the requirement ofthe provision of some sort of milling along abutting edges of adjacentpanels to provide suitable rain shed. In place of this, the very simplearrangement described in connection with Figure 7 may be employed inconnection with my invention when a perfectly smooth door appearance isdesired.

Furthermore, it is possible by the employment of my invention to providethe door panels in the appearance of overlapping shingles and, ifdesired, the wood surface may be serrated or otherwise marked to givethe appearance of shingles, thus providing a desirable architecturalfeature in conjunction with an extremely simple, rigid and inexpensivedoor construction.

What is claimed is:

1. An articulated overhead door comprising a plurality of horizontallyextending panels in linear array, horizontally extqlding means hingedlyconnecting adjacent longitudinal panel edges, each of said connectingmeans comprising a pair of members extending the length of its adjacentpanel edges, the members of each pair each including an uppermost andlowermost channel formed portion receiving the edge of its adjacentpanel and having substantially parallel channel sides engaging the innerand outer faces of its associated panel, the opposite ends of the innersides of each channel of each pair of channels being formed with legs,at least one of which is disposed at an acute angle with respect to itsadjacent channel side; with said legs each extending away from thepanels and converging toward each other with the lowermost of said legsinclined upwardly from the channel side and with both legs terminatingin concentric cylindrical hinge coils, said channel portions, extendinglegs and hinge coils forming a substantially triangular reinforcingstructure for adjacent panels connected thereby, a pair of spaced trackspositioned adjacent to transversely opposite sides of said linear arrayof panels, and means supported by said connecting means and mountingrollers positioned in said tracks supporting said array of panels formovement in said tracks.

2. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 in which the bases ofadjacent channel formed portions of adjacent members lie insubstantially parallel planes and in abutting relation.

3. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 in which the bases ofadjacent channel formed portions of adjacent members lie in abuttingrelation on surfaces displaced from surfaces normal to the planes oftheir re-' spective panels.

4. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 in which the bases ofadjacent channel formed portions of adjacent members lie in staggeredrelation to position adjacent panels in overlapping relation.

5. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 including means extendingtransversely of each panel and connected to said members for retainingthe channels in position on the panel.

6. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 including reinforcingmeans extending transversely across each panel between said membershaving end portions overlapping the leg portions of adjacent triangularreinforcing means, and in which said roller mounting means arepositioned within said concentric cylindrical hinge forming coils andextend through said overlapping end portions of said triangularreinforcing means on adjacent panels.

7. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 including reinforcingmeans extending transversely across each panel between said members forretaining the channels in position on the panel and in which each panelis formed of only a single sheet of material supported againstdeflection only by said connecting and reinforcing means.

8. A door structure in accordance with claim 1 including means mountedon the flange extending away from the uppermost channel of the uppermostpanel mounting uppermost rollers and means mounted on the flangeextending away from the lowermost channel of the lowermost panelmounting lowermost rollers, said uppermost and lowermost rollers beingpositioned in said tracks to support the uppermost and lowermostportions, respectively, of the door assembly.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,013,945 McCloud Jan. 9, 1912. 1,054,977 McCloud Mar. 4, 1913 1,872,652Best Aug. 23, 1932 1,888,162 Eklund Nov. 15, 1932 1,989,511 Ginder Jan.29, 1935 2,041,372 Rush May 19, 1936 2,134,397 Clark Oct. 25, 19382,268,669 Moore Jan. 6, 1942 2,300,265 Seiss Oct. 27, 1942

